Mongols at D-day?

Good afternoon,

For the Normandy invasion, we have a painting of captured German soliders. The combat artist listed some of the soliders as from Mongoila. There are photographs that ID soliders from Mongolia. I think they are ethnic Turks and members of 709th Infantry assigned to Utah Beach. Is there an official list of the different "volunteers" of the 709th to clear this up? Thanks!

-Gordon Calhoun
National Museum of the United States Navy
gordon.b.calhoun@navy.mil

 

Contact reports from the 101st Airborne Division identify some German-uniformed troops as ethnic Georgian. Josef Stalin was native to that region.

 

There's a Korean chap or two that were photographed captured at Normandy on the German side. Named & pretty well documented I think.

Ah, here we go.
Might fit the bill:
Yang Kyoungjong - Wikipedia

 

On the Cotentin, the following Osttruppen units may be identified. Note that most were designated only as "Ost" or Eastern, but some had regional designations. Many of them also had new designations (in parenthesis below) incorporating them into "German" units.

With 709. Inf.-Div.:
Ost-Btl. 649 (IV./Gren.Regt. 729) HQ at La Brasserie
Ost-Btl. 795 (Georgisches) (IV./Gren.Regt.739) [1] headquarters at Turqueville (battalion was deployed in the vicinity of Brucheville (8 kilometers north of Carentan)
Ost-Btl. 561 (IV./Gren.-Regt. 919) (attached to 243. Inf.-Div.)
Ost-Btl. 797 (attached to 243. Inf.-Div. and Ost-Gren.-Regt. z.b.V. 752)

With 243. Inf.-Div.:
Ost-Btl. 561 (IV./Gren.Regt.919) (attached from 709. Inf.-Div. 709) headquarters at Les Pieux
1. Kp. – Cavalie (2 kilometers southwest of Flamanville)
2. Kp. – Biville (5 kilometers southwest of St. Croix-Hague)
3. Kp. – Siouville (6 kilometers northwest of Les Pieux)

2./Ost-Btl.797. – St. Lô d’Ourville (attached from Inf.-Div. 709)

Ost-Gren.-Regt. z.b.V. 752 headquarters at Gavray, Kdr. Oberst Kessler
Ost-Art.-Btl. 752[1]
Ost-Pi.-Kp. 752
Ost-Btl. 635headquarters at St. Nicolas (east of Granville)
1.Kp. – Douville (northeast of Granville)
2.Kp. – St. Nicolas
3.Kp. – St. Pair (south of Granville)
4.Kp. – Queron (7 kilometers south of Granville)
Ost-Btl. 797 (Georgiches) (I./Gren.Regt. 739) (minus 2. Kp., attached from 709. Inf.-Div.) headquarters at Gouville (12 kilometers northwest of Coutances)
3.Kp. – Montmartin (8 kilometers southwest of Coutances)


[1] Incorporated into Ost-Gren.-Regt. z.b.V. 752 in April. A Gliderung from later in June shows this unit as a Pi.-Btl. with 3.Kp. replaced by a 3.Bttr. On 9 June it was referred to as an “Art.-Abtl.”


[1] Strength as of circa 6 June was 90 Germans and 833 Georgians according to Igor Jemeljanenko of http://www.ostbataillon.fromru.com.